By GB News (World News) | Created at 2026-09-30 09:51:00 | Updated at 2026-09-30 11:08:11
1 hour ago
Fighter jets were scrambled to intercept a commercial flight bound for Tel Aviv after passengers helped restrain a pilot alleged to have tried to hijack the plane.
Flydubai Flight FZ1073, travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv with 180 people on board, diverted over Jordanian airspace towards Saudi Arabia after transmitting emergency signals.
Israeli authorities scrambled fighter jets amid concerns the aircraft could have been hijacked, following an altercation in the cockpit, according to Israeli officials and passengers.
An Israeli official told the Jerusalem Post that a “major disaster was narrowly avoided”, alleging the pilot, understood to be an Omani national, attacked his co-pilot and attempted to take control of the aircraft with the intention of crashing it.
Flight-tracking data appeared to show the Boeing 737 MAX suddenly descending by almost 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds before the first emergency signal, according to Flightradar24.
The aircraft initially transmitted squawk code 7700, the international signal for a general emergency, before briefly switching to 7500, indicating unlawful interference or a possible hijacking. It later reverted to 7700.
The pilot, understood to be an Omani national, attacked his co-pilot and attempted to take control of the aircraft with the intention of crashing it
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